Chapter Three Everest （Kane）
CHAPTER THREE
EVEREST (KANE)
“Ready for the championship, Kane?” Vanessa asks, batting her eyes and fishing for attention.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I say unenthusiastically, then pull out my phone.
“I can’t wait to see you play. You always crush it,” she continues, stepping closer to me.
But I ignore her, much like I have every day since the start of the season.
She’s not a quitter; I’ll give her that.
Don’t get me wrong, she’s bad as hell with perky tits, long curly hair, and a fat ass.
And I certainly remember what her mouth does—but that’s as far as it’ll ever go.
She and every other girl here are the same…
puck bunnies looking for their label of WAG one day.
They can miss me with that. I have bigger things to worry about, things that none of them will understand, so there’s nothing she or anyone else can do for me.
Unless they can solve all my problems and make them disappear, I’m good.
Vanessa eventually gets the picture and turns her attention to Alex. I smirk because he thrives on the love we get around campus. With a new girl in his bed every other night, I’m sure he can fit Vanessa into the roster.
The sad thing is, she’ll wait. They always do. As long as they can attach themselves to the hottest player with the best chance of making it big, they’ll do whatever it takes. Including letting us run through them whenever and however we see fit.
Play a sport on this campus, and you can pretty much have your pick of the litter. And the better you are, the more pussy you get. There’s barely a chick at SKU that the boys and I haven’t had, save for the nerds and rejects.
Except for maybe Mountain. He’s all respectful and shit, staying to himself and keeping his focus on the game.
Hell, I can’t even remember the last time I’ve seen him smile.
It’s scary how focused he is. His ability to set aside all the bullshit and hone in is why he’s one of the best damn goalies I’ve ever seen on the ice.
He’s big and burly, which makes it easy for people to assume he’s slow.
But then the six-foot, two-hundred-pound fucker will block your shot before you even realize it.
If anyone is good under pressure, it’s him. No matter how aggressive the girls get, he’s got nerves of steel. He’s the complete opposite of Alex, the biggest man whore you’ll ever meet.
Which is fitting. You can tell a lot about a person by the position they play.
While Mountain is guarded and dependable, preferring to stay in the background, Alex is a charming motherfucker. That and the confidence he possesses makes him the perfect center. He’s quick on his feet and can read people better than anyone I know.
Meanwhile, I earn my reputation of being as ruthless off the ice as I am on it.
I hear all the shit the other students on campus call me: aggressive, scary, and rude as fuck.
All perfect traits for a defenseman. I’ve been told I’m unapproachable more times than I can count.
You’d think that would steer the bunnies away… It doesn’t.
And while getting my dick wet is always fun, that’s the last thing on my mind right now. With only three games left in the season and NHL scouts dropping in, all I’m trying to focus on is the game.
Well, trying to, at least.
Lately, I’ve been distracted, and it damn near cost us our last game.
The fucked-up part of it all is there’s no reprieve.
Nothing can make this better, and I’m reminded every damn day just how unfair this world is.
The corrupt remain untouchable, poisoning everything in their path, while the people they hurt suffer in silence.
I glance at my phone and open the email from my mom’s doctor.
For what feels like the millionth time, I read the single paragraph as if maybe the words will change this time.
But they don’t. It makes me angry every time her doctor tells me that she’s spiraling and needs her meds adjusted or that her account is past due because my asshole of a father likes to make us beg for help.
He’s the reason she’s in that place. He’s the reason everything about my life is so royally fucked.
“So I was thinking maybe we can hang out,” Vanessa proposes. Damn, this girl doesn’t quit. Her eye for Alex was short-lived. “It’s been a while. I figured we could catch up.”
I open my mouth to tell her I’m not interested, but I’m distracted when I hear the bus screech at the end of the sidewalk and three passengers step off. The new students are easy to spot with their wide eyes that try to take it all in.
It’s like this every semester. A bunch of kids from the inner city with big dreams and a scholarship come from different backgrounds but somehow always seem the same. Damn near carbon copies of the batch from the previous season.
Then I take in the last girl, and every muscle in my body tenses.
Sam?
It’s not her… it can’t be.
But the closer she gets, the clearer I can see. It’s been nine years, and the dorky eyeglasses have now been replaced with large, stylish ones that accentuate her face. She’s no longer the little pipsqueak who followed me around the hospital.
She’s all grown up, and the way those tattered jeans fit on her, every guy with a heartbeat will see just how filled out she’s gotten.
Her outfit sticks out among the crowd, a sore thumb next to the Gucci loafers and Prada backpacks.
She’s just a simple pair of jeans and an old Adidas hoodie, but it works for her.
She drags behind her two large suitcases and a duffel, and something tells me that’s all she has with her. Why else would she take the bus instead of being dropped off with all her things?
If the pinched brows are any indication, she’s lost. I take her in as she glances between her phone and the buildings. She looks innocent, a feeble fawn in a den of lions.
She’s also the only other person who knows about my mom.
Not even my best friends know what I’ve been dealing with all these years.
I never wanted them to, and I did everything possible to keep it that way.
I never invited them over to play video games or watch a movie.
It was easier when I started playing hockey.
All the practices and games made it so that I was rarely at home anyway.
And if we wanted to hang out, we did it at Alex’s place since he had an entire game room in his house.
But now, with her here, they could find out. And once they learn about my mother’s condition, it’ll lead to more questions that they could never know the answers to.
I struggle to tear my gaze away, but it’s dragged back against my will. Our eyes lock.
Her face shows shock at first; then she waves. I don’t respond. I stare at her, my mind racing a mile a minute. Her sweet smile slowly gets pulled down into a frown, and I force myself not to care.
Her face twists into a grimace, and I know it’s because of me. It’s for the best. I’m not the guy she used to know. My world is dark, and she needs to be far away from me.
But right now, she’s close enough that I can’t help but notice the small details about her.
Like the way the halo of tight, dark curls frames her face.
Or how flawless and soft her golden-brown skin appears from here.
Her expressive, almond-shaped eyes are framed by perfectly arched brows, and her full, glossy lips add to her allure.
Hell, she even looks like she smells good—like vanilla and cocoa butter or some shit. And even though she’s wearing glasses, they don’t hide the sadness in her stare.
For a brief second, I want to know how she’s been. But then I remember I don’t care—at least, I’m not supposed to—about her or any of the other students on this campus.
“Think they’re freshmen?” Alex’s voice slices through my consciousness. I don’t even bother looking at him. Instead, I continue to watch Sam as she turns and walks away. I shrug. She’s only two years behind us, so she would be a sophomore, but I agree anyway.
“Probably. They usually are.”
He nods in agreement. “That’s true. Are you ready for the new semester?”
“No.” The word comes out more like a growl than an actual response, but he gets it.
“Yeah, well, neither am I, but at least we have some fresh meat to play with.” He smirks and wiggles his brows suggestively.
I roll my eyes at his antics. If there is one thing you can count on when it comes to Alex, it’s that he never misses an opportunity to make things about sex. It’s how he’s always been, and I doubt he’ll ever change.
Not when every girl on campus throws herself at him. And who could blame them? He’s the golden boy and captain of the hockey team. Not to mention, his father runs the school.
“Have fun with that,” I tell him, not bothering to hide the lack of interest in my voice.
“Oh, come on, Kane. Don’t act like you won’t be trying to get a piece, too. Last time I checked, you were pulling just as much ass as I was.”
I shrug, unsure how to answer him because he isn’t wrong. We both ran through our fair share of women last year, so I can see why he’d assume that nothing had changed.
But it has. At least for me.
I’ve spent the break trying to figure out who I am outside of this life I’ve been handed.
“Seriously, bro, what’s up? You’ve been a little off lately.”
I suck in a breath, glaring at him for not letting this go.
The truth is, shit changed for me, and he can never know why.
I can never truly let him in because that would mean blowing up everything either of us has ever known.
It would mean ruining lives and reputations.
It would mean my mother no longer gets the care she needs.
It could mean the end.
So while it may disappoint my best friend that chasing ass isn’t on my priority list, he’ll just have to take it as it is.
“I’m fine.” My gaze lands on the girl again, and everything stills for a beat. “Look, man, I appreciate the concern, but I’m good, okay? Whatever happens between me and these girls, or lack thereof, is my business. So how about we focus on what’s important, huh?”
“Yeah, and what’s that?”
“Winning the championship.”
He grins. “Fair enough.”
Thankfully, he turns his attention back to the girls. Unfortunately, I know that’s not the end of it—it never is with him. But a win is a win.
I glance over at Bryden, or Mountain, as we call him. He’s been standing a few feet from us with his back turned. If it isn’t about hockey or schoolwork, Mountain wants nothing to do with it. And that includes girls. It’s one of the many reasons the team thinks he’s weird.
But in reality, he’s probably the most normal out of all of us.
“What about you, Mountain?” Alex pries. “Do you plan on getting any this semester? We have fifteen weeks left before college is over.”
Mountain glares at him. “Why are you so concerned with where the rest of us put our junk?”
I laugh. Mountain rarely engages, but when he does, it’s always hilarious.
“I’m just saying. This is prime time, and there are way too many girls around to not be getting some.”
“That may be true, but unlike some people, I have nothing to prove.”
Alex nods, knowing his friend is just teasing him and seemingly satisfied with Mountain’s answer. Even if he did care, he couldn’t do much about it. Everyone knows Mountain does whatever he wants when he wants, and no person on this campus could convince him otherwise.
“Well, now that I’ve killed your little peer pressure campaign, I’m going to go. I have things to do tomorrow, and I’d rather not spend my night listening to you two.” Mountain pats me on the shoulder and walks off.
I use this chance to get lost. “All right, man. I’m out, too. See y’all at the crib.”
“Yo. Where are you going?” Alex asks with his hand out at his sides.
“Away from you, Captain.”